Whitmore out of Vanderbilt with foot issue

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Saturday’s Grade 1 Vanderbilt Handicap was drawn Wednesday with eight starters, but lost one of its major players earlier that morning when trainer Ron Moquette withdrew Whitmore from consideration for the race due to a minor foot issue.

Moquette said Whitmore, who would have been the 123-pound highweight if he started, had a pulse in his foot Wednesday caused by an injury he believed his horse incurred on the flight from Kentucky the previous day.

“It’s a shoe issue, he probably pounded it on the airplane coming here,” Moquette said. “We pulled the shoe off, and he’s already 90 percent better. He feels a lot more comfortable. Luckily, I train for people that will let me put the horse first, so we will not run on Saturday. I’ll soak the foot good for a few days, and he should be fine.”

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Whitmore was returning to New York hoping to avenge his only setback of the year – a third-place finish as the even-money favorite in the True North on June 9 at Belmont Park, a defeat Moquette primarily attributed to an unlucky trip. Whitmore was forced extremely wide turning for home and was never a serious factor after racing near the rear of the pack during the early stages of the Grade 2 dash. Whitmore had won his four previous starts this season, and last five overall, including the Grade 3 Count Fleet and Maryland Sprint, at Oaklawn Park and Pimlico, respectively, earlier in the season.

Moquette said he plans for Whitmore to remain at Saratoga once able to resume training.

“We’ll train him here and see if anything else comes up,” Moquette said. “I want to keep him at six furlongs because that’s the distance of the Breeders’ Cup Sprint, which is our main goal this year. The main thing right now, however, is getting that foot healed. We deal with horses, and there’s always going to be good news and bad news, and this is probably the best bad news we could have.”

The defection of Whitmore from the Vanderbilt may also be good news and bad news for the connections of defending champion A. P. Indian, who will now go postward the starting highweight under 120 pounds. A. P. Indian will certainly have a better chance of winning the race without his nemesis in the lineup, although he loses the opportunity to avenge his most recent setback, a half-length loss to Whitmore in the Maryland Sprint.

A. P. Indian will break from post 4 under regular rider Joe Bravo in a field that includes, from the rail out, Spartiatis (Rajiv Maragh); Awesome Banner (Jose Lezcano); El Deal (Javier Castellano); Bird Song (Julien Leparoux); Ready for Rye (Luis Saez); Green Gratto (Kendrick Carmouche); and Limousine Liberal(Jose Ortiz).